Court refuses Quintis founder’s claim

The Federal Court has refused Quintis founder Frank Wilson's request to throw out a creditor's petition over his failure to comply with a $15 million bankruptcy notice.

Justice Katrina Banks-Smith yesterday rejected Mr Wilson’s application to adjourn Arwon Finance’s creditor’s petition against him and ordered his estate to be sequestrated, or confiscated, until the debt has been paid.

Arwon Finance is a subsidiary of Quintis, a company of which Mr Wilson was a director until March 2017.

In 2014, Mr Wilson took out a $13.2 million loan with Arwon Finance to invest in sandalwood plantations that were being established by Quintis Sandalwood.

However, he stopped making payments in January 2017 and resigned from Quintis Group a couple of months later.

Arwon launched proceedings against Mr Wilson in the Supreme Court of Western Australia to recover the loan in 2017. The court ruled in favour of Arwon Finance.

The Quintis subsidiary issued a bankruptcy notice to Mr Wilson over an unpaid debt of $15.2 million in early 2021.

Mr Wilson applied to the Federal Court to set aside the bankruptcy notice, which led to Arwon issuing a creditor’s petition seeking a sequestration order.

The former plantation investment manager claimed the creditor’s petition should be adjourned and alleged that Arwon and other parties have conspired to cause him financial harm and economic loss.

Mr Wilson sought an adjournment of the creditor's petition because he has reasonable cross-claims issued against Arwon, according to yesterday's Federal Court judgment.

Justice Banks-Smith said the matters Mr Wilson had relied on fell well short of suggesting any conspiracy.

“I am not satisfied that the matters relied upon by Mr Wilson are sufficient for a court to infer that there was any combination or agreement between Arwon and any other party to injure Mr Wilson,” she said in her judgment.

“I do not consider that Mr Wilson … has any sufficient prospect of persuading a court that there is a foundation for drawing the inferences he says should be drawn.

“I am satisfied that Mr Wilson failed to comply with the bankruptcy notice and has committed and act of bankruptcy.”